NEWS

Bronze Rat / Seriés Aphōnos are excited to announce the forthcoming release of Candy Bomber Vol.1, which is available to pre-order here. Listen to the album’s opening track ‘Cut!’ below:

The Candy Bomber sessions were spearheaded by Paul Lemp, co-owner of the studio of the same name, theater, film and dance composer, and impassioned bass player. The sessions were his dream project of free-spirited experimentation into which he injected his boundless energy, teaming up with Thomas Wydler (drummer and longest serving member of Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds) and studio partner Ingo Krauss (Conny Plank’s studio engineer between 1987 and 2001) to form a core triumvirate, that spiralled outwards to bring in a who’s who of talented friends and studio visitors. In this volume these include Kid Congo Powers, Swiss jazz pianist Stefan Rusconi, Jochen Arbeit (Einstürzende Neubauten/Automat), Gemma Ray, Toby Dammit (Iggy Pop/Nick Cave), André Vida, Toni Kater, Charly Birkenhauer, Paul Kuchenbuch and Matthew Styles.

Built during the Nazi era, the building which houses Candy Bomber was once the largest in the world. (a Julian Montague impression of the facade of the building adorns the album cover). In 1948/49 it served as the hub for the Berlin airlift, when the allied forces flew over 200,000 flights supplying the Western part of the city with daily necessities. The airlift also provided the name for the studio, which set up shop in rooms that previously hosted a computing centre for the CIA. The studio is now legendary in Berlin, not least for its enviable collection of vintage valve gear.

With this at their disposal, Lemp, Krauss and Wydler established an environment for sessions that were organic, pressure-free and, more or less, agenda-less. The end result is sonic art unimpeded – a wild cocktail of originality, intensity, beauty, sincerity, and stunning freeform musicianship – underscored by a Dada-ist playfulness and motivating force. This is not a work of chin-stroking abstraction however – here you’ll find some of the coolest jams, ones that will peel your face off.

Tragically, Paul Lemp died prematurely and unexpectedly in summer 2015, before the Candy Bomber sessions were finished. Krauss and Wydler finished the record shortly after, and despite his passing (and as the Vol. 1 title suggests) – intend to continue them in his honour.

Candy Bomber Vol.1 is released on 13th January 2017 on LP, CD and digital download.

Several months have past since the release of the sublime United Sounds of Joy record (available here!). To reminds us all what a great record that was, a new video has emerged for the song ‘The Sun That Hides The Darker Star’. Watch it below:

Filmed and directed by Steve Gullick, the song is taken from the new album The Exodus Suite. Click on the image below to watch. The video was also premiered on Tone Deaf, so head hereto read more about it. Gemma Ray is about to embark on a European and US tour. Visit www.gemmaray.tv/livefor more details.

The new Gemma Ray album, “The Exodus Suite”, is out today in Europe! Available on CD, LP (with bonus 7″ + download card) and on all digital platforms. You can buy it from all good record stores, or….OURS!

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There are two special album launch concerts (in London and Berlin) where Gemma and band will perform the album and beyond.

Brand new video for The Original One, directed by the one and only Steve Gullick. WATCH IT HERE!!

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Gemma also plays a handful of summer shows before her tour starts in September, including a special show with Howe Gelb at Gateshead Sage on July 22nd. For dates, visit HERE.

Lastly, for the uninitiated amongst you, you can listen to and download, for free, the song “There Must Be More Than This” in the widget below or here , or check out the temporary full album stream over at Rolling Stone.

Today marks the latest release in the Series Aphonos music library. Cooked up in Berlin by its cast of international musicians in Berlin, the debut offering from The Still focuses on minimal grooves and hypnotic soundscapes.

The band features experimental drummer/percussionist Steve Heather and fellow Australian Chris Abrahams (The Necks) on piano, Canadian Derek Shirley on double bass, the wonderfully-named German guitarist Rico Repotente, and Thomas Meadowcraft on organ/revox – together they create hypnotic perfectly-tensioned instrumental music.Listen to the track ‘The Early Bird’ below and order The Still here.